Personal computer systems in general and IBM compatible personal computer systems in particular have attained widespread use for providing computer power to many segments of today's modern society. A personal computer system can usually be defined as a desktop, floor standing, or portable microcomputer that includes a system unit (also referred to as a host system) having a system processor and associated volatile and non-volatile memory, one or more diskette drives, and a fixed disk storage device; the computer system also includes a display, a keyboard, and a mouse coupled to the system unit. One of the distinguishing characteristics of these systems is the use of a system board to electrically connect these components together. These personal computer systems are information handling systems that are designed primarily to give independent computing power to a single user (or a relatively small group of users in the case of personal computers that serve as computer server systems) and are inexpensively priced for purchase by individuals or businesses.
The original personal computers were controlled by operating systems such as the CP/M operating system supplied by Digital Research and the Disc Operating System (DOS) supplied by Microsoft. A user interacted with these computers by typing purely verbal predetermined commands into the computer. A user accessed information within the computer system (i.e., navigated through the system) by typing commands that instructed the computer to run software programs, to change directories, and to view directories.
In response to these systems and in an attempt to make computers use more intuitive, graphical user interfaces (GUI) that included personal computer navigation systems were developed. These GUI's are exemplified by the System 7 operating system which executes on Apple Macintosh computers and by the Microsoft Windows operating environment which executes on IBM compatible personal computers.
However, while operating systems have become more intuitive, certain parts of the operation of the computer systems have not. One example of a part of the operation of a computer system that is not particularly intuitive is the initial start-up procedure of most computer systems. (Initial start-up is the first time that the system is powered-on.) The initial start-up is especially challenging as this is a part of operation of a computer system to which new users are first exposed. In the prior art, instructions relating to the operation of the computer system were communicated via hard-copy manuals or via text-based screens which appear on the screen of the computer when the computer is powered on.